Bobbi Brown Friends & Family Sale 2011 – 20% off!

Starting on Monday, April 11th, Bobbi Brown’s Friends & Family Event will kick off! Get 20% off all products from April 11th through 13th at bobbibrown.com. No code necessary, the discount is supposed to kick in automatically. Shipping is free on $65+ orders.

Hiding Shadows with Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer

Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer Kit ($32.00 for 0.11 oz.) is a launch of a familiar product–but it’s been tweaked and improved. They made the formula more concentrated–a little goes a long way–so you can something more opaque. It’s also less creamy, so it won’t settle fine lines. The shade range (both the concealers and correctors) was also been improved so they would match each person better. The compact was designed to be small and made that way for portability. This review is just for the Creamy Concealer–Bobbi Brown also has a Corrector (which I will review later), but if you want to go for the full arsenal, it is best to apply the color correcting product first, followed by the concealer, and finally set it with powder.

I received three shades to test: Warm Beige, Natural, and Natural Tan. In the past, I’ve used the Light-to-Medium Tint of Bobbi Brown’s Tinted Moisturizing Balm, and both Beige and Warm Beige are recommended–but I’m definitely on edge of Light-to-Medium (Medium was only a touch too dark). Honestly, swatching the three together showed just how subtly each would change. Warm Beige definitely has those warm, yellow tones but it has a beigeness to it that isn’t as apparent in Natural, which almost seems lighter than Warm Beige (but yellower). Similarly, Natural Tan is a shade darker than Natural, but it starts to look almost orange on my skin (because it’s not a shade match).

I settled on Warm Beige as my match, and I think it worked out well. It added some warmth to my under eye area, which has some shadowing from tired eyes. There are fourteen shades (ranging from Porcelain to Chestnut) to choose from in the Creamy Concealer range. All of the concealer kits, except Porcelain (which includes a White Powder) are paired with a Pale Yellow Powder. Bobbi Brown also put a step-by-step guide and video on their website. There is also an excellent shade guide for how to match the Corrector and Creamy Concealer shades, which I thought was well-done and helpful.

I really liked the Creamy Concealer, which had a smooth, creamy consistency that applied opaquely and blended out easily. It was creamy without being like butter; there was some stiffness to it that enabled it to stay in place and instantly settle into fine lines. It is rather opaque but blends out slightly, though it seems like a heavier concealer overall. I did experience some creasing after five hours when I did not set it with powder at all; if I set it with powder (Bobbi Brown’s or something else), it lasted all day (twelve hours).

I wasn’t won over by the Pale Yellow powder, though. It does help set the concealer, but I felt that it did seem to be too dry (or perhaps, not fine enough) of a powder to work well for my under eye area. It also kicked up a lot of powdery dust every time I went to use, and I didn’t like how some of the excess powder migrated into the concealer well.

The kit is $32, while the concealer on its own is $22, but the concealer in the kit is 0.05 oz. while individually it is 0.06 oz. The included Pale Yellow powder is 0.06 oz., which is also available on its own at $34 for 0.38 oz. The value of the kit is $18.33 worth of concealer and $5.37 worth of powder–a total value of only $23.70.

If you tote your concealer around regularly, perhaps the convenience aspect will be worth the $9 you pay to have them together, but it’s a rather hefty convenience charge. I will also concede that you cannot buy the powder for less than $34 on its own (since it doesn’t come in such a small size individually). I will note that online it states that there is 0.21 oz. worth of product, but the back of my compact says 0.05 and 0.06 oz. (and the size of the pan is the same as the individual ones).

The Glossover

I think the concealer works well, and it did a nice job of covering my under eye circles while subtly brightening the area. I wouldn't call it a brightening product, but it did add warmth and lightness to my otherwise shadowy under eye area. Because I didn't love the powder, I do hope Bobbi Brown will consider offering Concealer and Corrector kits in the future--I think those would be more useful together. Please note, the rating is ONLY for the Creamy Concealer. The Pale Yellow powder would score 7.5, 8, 7, 9, 4, and 4 - for a score of C+.

Where to Buy

Sometimes products are discontinued or limited edition, which means that a product may no longer be available at one or more retailers so you may need to shop around for those hard-to-find shades! We try to update products as they become discontinued, and if you discover a product has been discontinued, please help us help others by letting us know.

Disclosure: Temptalia uses affiliate links, which give us a small commission when you make a purchase (given to us by the retailer, at no cost to you). Your purchases help to support the site!

Opal is a soft, silvered gray with beige and a frosted finish. It was nicely pigmented.

Lavender is a pink-tinged lavender with a frosted metallic finish. This is a metallic eyeshadow. The pigmentation was spot-on.

Cool Ivory is a cool-toned grayish beige with a matte finish. It had a very smooth, silky texture and went on nicely.

Cobra is a slightly sheer bluish gray with sparkle. This is a shimmer wash eyeshadow, which is supposed to be sheer.

Plum Orchid is a blackened, deep purple with a matte finish. Unlike many of Bobbi Brown’s mattes, I felt this one was chalky and not nearly as pigmented as I would expect. It reminded me of my issues with NARS Daphne, but I did not feel like this worked beautifully when applied–it was still a bit chalky.

Eclipse is a dark black with a matte finish. It, too, was not nearly as buttery as Bobbi Brown’s mattes usually are. Eclipse was not nearly as frustrating as Plum Orchid, though, as it was more pigmented and applied better.

The palette contains 0.24 oz. worth of eyeshadow, which is an equivalent value of $40.00 of eyeshadow, $10.00 of shimmer wash eyeshadow, and $8.00 of metallic eyeshadow–plus two miniature sized brushes. The value of the palette is no less than $58.00, but I would say it’s a bit higher, with the brushes.

When I tried using the palette in an eye look, I found the colors seemed rather stubborn–they really did not want to play together. I felt like the resulting look was rather muddy and trying to go back and deepen certain shades only made it look worse.

The Glossover

I went through and averaged the quality scores for the eyeshadows, which ended up being 22/30, even though two shades were below average. I think this palette is best for those with cool-toned skin, because of how cool the palette is overall.

Where to Buy

Sometimes products are discontinued or limited edition, which means that a product may no longer be available at one or more retailers so you may need to shop around for those hard-to-find shades! We try to update products as they become discontinued, and if you discover a product has been discontinued, please help us help others by letting us know.

Disclosure: Temptalia uses affiliate links, which give us a small commission when you make a purchase (given to us by the retailer, at no cost to you). Your purchases help to support the site!

Bobbi Brown Corrector & Creamy Concealer

Bobbi’s taken her number one beauty secret and made it even better. “This new formula gives you quick, perfect coverage. It’s rich and creamy without being thick—so it goes on easily and blends smoothly with minimal effort.” — Bobbi Brown

Reformulated to deliver perfect coverage, the new Correctors and Creamy Concealers erase dark circles as only Bobbi Brown can. Bobbi believes that the secret to covering dark circles lies in a unique two-step approach. She starts with pink- or peachtoned Corrector to brighten and neutralize the purple and green tones of under eye circles. For pale skin, she recommends the lighter Corrector shades starting with Porcelain Bisque. For deeper skin tones, she recommends the Medium to Dark Bisque and Peach Shades. Next, Bobbi uses yellow-toned Creamy Concealer to lighten and blend the under eye area with the rest of the face.